Process of obtaining- electricity from aas batteries



(No Model.) 3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

. L. MOND. & O. LANGER. PROCESS OF OBTAINING ELECTRICITY FROM GAS BATTERIES.

No. 409,866. Patented Aug. 20, 1889.

A IVETEII'E (:No Model.) 7 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

' L. MOND & G. LANGER. BROGESS 0P OBTAINING ELECTRICITY- FROM GAS BATTERIES.

No. 409,366. v Patented AugY ZO, 18 89.-

3 Sheets-Sheet 3.

(No Model.)

L. MOND 8; O. LANGER.- PROCESS OF OBTAINING BLEGTRIOITYFROM'GAS BATTERIES.

Patented. Aug. 20, 1889.

Mt E5555 WE LEY 5 UNITED STAT S PATENT Trice,

LULHYIG .\It).\'l), ()F XUll'lllWltll, (OUNTY 0F tllES'lEli, AND CARL LANGER, til LUNDOBQIUI NTY OI" MTDDLESEX, L GLANI).

PROCESS OF OBTAINING ELECTRlClTY FROM GAS-BATTER1ES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 409,366, dated August 20, 1889.

Application filctl March 18, 1889. Serial N01 303,742. (No model.) Patented in England February 17, 1888, No- 2,411; in France October 5, 1888, No. 192,342; in Italy October 13, 1888, XXII, 23,943, XLVII, 225; in Luxemburg November 28,188 8,No. 1,058; in Turkey November 28, 1888, No. 130; in Belgium December 15, 1888, No. 84,102} in New South Wales January 2, 1889, No.1,152; in Brazil February 1,1889,No. 665, and in Spain February 12, 1889, No. 8,955.

To all whom it may concern.-

lle it known that we, Ltnvvlo )loxn, manufacturingchemist, of \Yinnington Hall, Northwich, in the county of Chester, and CARL LANoEu, Ph. 1)., of South llain-pstead, London, in the county of llliddlese England, have inventor? certain new and useful Improvements in the Method of Obtaining Electricity from Gas, (for which we have received Letters latout as foliows,to wit: in Belgium, No. 81,102, December 15, 1 888; inl-lrazil, No. 665, February 1,188.); in England, No. 2,111, February 17, 1888; in France, No. 192,312, October 5, 1888; in Italy, XXII, 23,91 5, XLVlI, 225, October 13, H88; in lnixeniburg', l\'o. 1,058, November 28,1888; in New South Wales, No. 1,152, January 2, 18.39; in Spain, No. 8,955, February 12, isso, and in 'lurkey, No. 130, November 28, I888,)'of which the following is a specification.

Gas-batteries have heretofore been made by bringing two gases capable of chemical action upon each othersuch as hydrogen and oxygeniuto contact with solid substances which have the power of absorbing or condensing these gases-such-as platinum and carbon-and immersing these absorbing substances partly into a liquid electrolyte, which keeps the two cases separated. All these batteries have proved very incifective and of no practical utility. In the earlier ones, in. which the absorbing substance remained stationary in the liquid electrolyte, the act lug surface was exceedingly small, and (.dltHiftjllellfly the duty done by the battery wits in-i;rnifieant. In the later ones, in which tutztla--rorbing substance as alternately cxinsCtl to the as and to the liquid electrolyte, b moving either the former or the latter the absorbing substances become covered by a film of liquid which almost destroys their po er of absorbing gases. In order to oven come both thew,- difiicultics, we abandon the use of a simple liquid electrolyte and substitute tor it a solid porous substance, which we imprcunatt by a. liquid electrolyte, so that the :e lisoi bine' substance coming into contact with it remains dry enough to retain its absorbing power for the gases to a sufiicient degree. The porous substances used for this purpose must be non-conductors of electricity; they must be uualterable by the other substances with which they come in contact in the battery, and must be impermeable to gases after they have been impregnated with the electrolyte. A great many substances can be used for this purpose, among which we may name paper, pastcboard, infusorial earth, sand, asbestus, clay, leather, linen, flannel, &c. If dry powders are used, we inclose these between diaphragms or in a bag of parchment, paper, or other suitable substance. To have, however, found plates of porous earthenware and plates of plaster-of-paris to be the most handy. These porous substances we bring in contact with a substance or a mixture of several substances, which have the power of absorbing; or COlltlOllSlllQ, the gases to be employed. For this purpose the metals of the platinum group (pl. tinuin, palladium, iridium, osmium, rhodium, ruthcniunn) more particularly in the form of a fine powder, such as platinum-black, are pro-eminently suitable, but other substanccs may be used, among which we may name finely-divided carbon. These absorbing substances are relatively bad conductors of electricity, and in order to reduce the internal resistance of the battery as far as possible we bring them into frequent cont-act with a good conductor to So carry away the electricity formed. This conductor inust be in intimatecontac't with the absorbing substance, but it must neither prevent the free access of the gas to it nor the contact of the absorbing substance with the 8 electrolyte; and it must also be unalterable by the substances used or produced in the battery. \Ve find very thin platinum, or gold foil or leaf perforated by very numerous and very small holes, or very fine platinum or gold-wire gauze, most suitable'for this purpose. This metallic foil-leaf or gauze We apply ovcr the whole surface of the. absorbing substance, or we apply the foil-leaf or gauze to the surface of the porous substance, and put the absorbing substance on the outside S gradually decrease on account of the liquid heat produced in the battery itself assisting in carrying the water from it.

' Fig. 5 being a section, on linefz ,2, Fig. 6, Fig. 6, asectional plan on line 10 w, jFig. 5, and" SO 1 tery showniuFigs. 5, 6, and 7,"b'ut with the polarization. Figs. 2 to 6, inclusive, and Fig.

'electrolitically. The metallic foil or gauze is I connected by'convenient means to the poles 'provided with proper. means of egress and 'ite,) by means of of it in such a way that it fills up the holes or open spaces in the foil ,or gauze, and thus comes in contact with the porous substance; or we may put the absorbingsubstance on both I sides of the foil or gauze, or coat the foil or gauze with platinum-black "or its equivalent of the battery. We thus obtain plates or vessels, which are fixed'in gas-tight chambers ingress for the gases to be employed. It gases are used in sucha battery, such as hydrogen or oxygen, which by their chemical union produce a liquid, the action ofthe battery would formedsoaking the absorbing substance employed. To avoid this we employ one or both of the gases dry or hot, so that they are capable'of evaporating and taking up the watem or other liquid formed, and pass the gasesthrough the. battery insufficient quantity to carry 01f in this way in the form ot-vapor all the liquid'produced in the battery. The gases, after having'been deprived of the vapor so take'nup by drying or cooling, may be-re-' turned to the battery. When we employ hy-' drogen and atmospheric air, an find that all the water formed can be removed by simply passing an excess of air through the battery without previously drying or heating it, the:

We will now proceed to describe severalways for carrying out our invention, refer euce being had. to the accompanying draw ings, in-which. V v

Figure 1 is a section of'a very small battery consisting of a single plate,-and illustrates the manner of constructing the plates. Figs. 2, 3, and 4 show aconvenient form of construction for a battery of small or moderate size, Figs. 2 and 3 being, respectively, sections on lines 00 a: and y y, Fig. 4, and Fig. 4 being a plan with the top covering-platere moved. Figs. 5, 6, and? illustrate a convenient form of constructio'n for a large battery,

Fig. 7 an enlarged section of a portion of the. battery, illustrati-n the method of forming the'plates' thereof; ig. 8,a view of: the bataddition of anappliance for use in changing the gas from time to time to counteract the 8 are broken away inthe center to avoid repetition in the drawings. 1 v

Referring to Figs. 1 to l, for batteries of small or moderate size we iii: the porous plates M, mentioned above, (say thin plates of earthenware or plaster-of-paris,) in a frame- R, composed of a material non-conducting and impermeable to the gases, (such as ebona suitable cement S, such as sealing-wax. This frame is provided on protected by a sheet ot paper.

the metal ic foil.)

ceases narrow metallic conducting-strips A, which are joined to the poles PP of the batter y. We form these. conductihg-strips by providing the frame, of ebonite all rou nd the porous plates at a distance of about two millimeters from these plates'with grooves, which we fill with an easi g-tusible alloy, with a hard setting amalga or with metallic'wires or strips fixed in these grooves. We employ the porous substance in small plates of square shape, of

about three to five centimeters each side,

and in case the surface of one porous plate is not sufiicient to generate the required strength;

of currentwe cementseveral of them in the same frame of ebonite, as, shown-in Fig. 4.

Then theruorous plates are impregnated by a (such as dilute sulphuric they are covered on both sidesgwith platinum or gold-foil m, Fig.1, which projects beyond the plate in such awith the.

liquid electrolyte, acid,) and afterward way that it is in metallic connection conducting-strips Athat is to say, that the foil covers the strips. To insure that the metallic contact between the foil and the] conducting-strips; does not sufier [from the. oxidation of theselatter, we coat the foil in the places where itfcovers the very fine, 'mctallic- :foil used contains -al-" readymany small pores or holes, and can be strips with fusedparaffine or a suitablevarnish" The 5 appliedas it is, but it'is advantageous to I small'holes, which'can'easily be done by mechanical means. Themetallic foil is put upon the porous platesyand made to adhere by the reduction of chloride of platinum in dilute alkaline solution by means of formic perforate it with a verylarge-number of very acid. We find'a quantity of two-tenths of a l .granr p'erfisquare decimeterof surface to give a good result. This platinum-black we forminto 'a 'aste with dilutedsulphuric acid, and we a py this, paste with a brush upon P'artot the platinum-black penetrates through the holes ot the fpil andis-broiightinto contact withv the, per ousplate, while part of it remains on the 'outsideof the foil, where it is rapidly dried .and kept dry by the gases passing through the battery, and consequently exerts .iipon' .the gases "a very stro'n Between the p ates thus prepared. we place frames K, of indiarubher' qr ct power of absorption.

another suitable substance, or the same di mensions in breadth and length as-the frames .R otthe ebbnit'e, so as to form narrow and gas-tight chambers "G, G, G*,'&c., between t "the frames of ebonite, which may-be arranged one above the other, as in Figs. 2 and 3, or sideby side in such a way thatafter pressing them together with end plates E E, of a stiff material, and screws E we obtain-between every two of the ebonite' plates gas-tight chambers G, G, G}, &c. These chambers are '3 R, which form the inlets and outlets for the gases to the gas-chambers Gf, G, G 860., or we out such frames from a metallic plate of a suitable metal. The places which later will be in contact with the electrolyte are covered with an insulating-layer a, Fig. 7, impermeable to and. unattachable by the electrolyte-for example, a mixture of beeswax and resin or gutta-percha. Between two such frames we insert a thin sheet S, of porous material, prepared by coating a piece of canvas or paper or other suitable substance of the full size of the frames with plaster-ofparis, or its substitute, on both sides, and made impervious round the edges by impregnating it with a mixture of beeswax and resin, or other suitable insulating substance. Ne then till the free spaces M in the squares formed by the conducting-strips with a porous substance, say plaster-of-paris, in such a way as to obtain a plate even on theoutside.

These plates are then covered with the conducting and absorbing substances m, Fig. 7, in the same way as before described, and are united in a battery with the interposition of frames K, of india-rubber, pasteboard, or other suitable substance, so as to form the gas-chambers G.

Fig. 5 shows a transverse section (on line Y z 2, Fig. (i) of a battery of seven plates, and

also the'method of connecting the gas-chambers with each other. The communications between these chambers are made by cork or rubber washers or hollow cylinders Q. The first and last gas-chambers are formed by placing a plate J, of past-eboard or other nonv conducting material, at each side of the battery. The whole battery is now placed between two metallic plates Z Z Fig. 5, say

of zinc, which project a certain distance beyond the plates forming the battery. All the visibleparts'ofthe frames not covered by these two zinc plates Z Z are now well coated with a mixture of beeswax and resin or other suitable varnish, and the space V left between the two zinc plates is then filled up with plaster of-paris, so as to obtain a solid block with even surfaces. After the plasterof-paris has been allowed to set and dry we -,cover it with the zincplates Z Z Z Z and solder all the zinc plates together, so as to obtain one solid compact block with no open- .ing into it, except the exits and entrances 0 ll, for the two gases. I The chemical action in the battery consist-s .into H and S0,. The hydrogen is carried by the current to the oxygen side, and there combines with it by the aid of the platinumblack under the formation of water. The S0 is carried toward the hydrogen side and combines with this again, forming sulphuric acid. By this action an increasing accumulation of the sulphuric acid on the hydrogen side takes place, and an accumulation of water on the oxygen side, which produces a polarization, causing a diminution of theelectro-motive force of the battery. To counteract this polarization, we change the gases from time to time, (for instance, say once an hour,) so that the hydrogen is passed through the chambers previously filled with oxygen, and vice versa. Bythis means the sulphuric acid accumulated on one side of theelement is gradually taken back andthen accu1 nulated on the other side, and so on. The changing of the gases can be carried out by any suitable means, either in one chamher at a time or through the whole battery at once,j or the appliance shown in Fig. 8 may be employed, which, as will be seen, is simply a four-way cock. By moving the handle shown in dotted lines, so that the plug of the cock takes the position at right angles tothat shown, the oxygen will then pass through the chambers"through which the hydrogen has been passing, while the hydrogen will pass through those through which the oxygen has been passing.

These gas-batteries enableus to produce electricity at very low cost by using on the one side atmospheric air, on the other side the hydrogenic gases produced by the action of steam upon incandescent coke, anthracite,

iron, (he, and by the imperfect combustion of coal, coke, or other carbonaceous substance by a mixture of air and steam. These gases, however, must be very carefully purified, and freed as much as possible from the carbon monoxide, which they may contain.

Even in using the hydrogen produced by the action of sulphuric acid upon zinc, our batteries offer special advantages over the hydro-electric batteries. We use atmospheric air as a depolarizer, and our battery is very compact, very clea does not give out any IIO smell, and is easily and quickly set in and out of action.

WVe do not limit ourselves to the-details of the form and construction of the. batteries which we have described, nor, to the use of the gases and substances mentioned in-this specification as being used in the construction and working of the batteries. It is evident that the form and construction of the batteries can be varied in a great many ways and that a very large number of different sub- I stances can be employed to attain our end.

No claim is made herein. to the apparatus for carrying out the process, as that is set Having thus described our invention, what we claim is 1. The process of obtaining" electricity by means of two gasessnch as oxygen and by drogenwhich consists in causing said gases to each come in contact at'or near ordinary temperatures with a layer of gas-absorbing material itself incontact with the electrolyte, the two layers of gas-absorbing materials being eachinsnlated from theother of them and each of them connected with one of the poles of 'the battery, the'twov gases being inter-I changed periodically, substantially as described.

22. The process of obtaining electricity by means of agas-batter which consists in passing at. or about ordinary atmospheric temperature 'combustiblegasand air, respect,- ively, over Opposite sides of an electrolyte in contact on both sideswith gas-absorbingn 1aterials, and collecting the electricity at innumerable points on each side, respectively,

by conducting matter connected with opposite poles of the battery.

I The improvements in the process of ob taining electricity, as described, which consists in periodically interchanging the air and combustible gas so that each shall occupy the position weviouslyoccupied by the other, 7

whereby the working-power ot' the electrolyte is restored and local-action or polarization in great part prevented, substantially as described.

In testimony \\-'hereot \ve have signed our names to-this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

Lunwie ono. cam. LAN t on.

. Witnesses:-

' ALFRED J. lloinl'r, HARRY B. BRIDGE. 

